Police arrest father over son’s death

“The lifeless body of the child was found in a soak-away pit dug in the abandoned uncompleted building.”

The police in Anambra State have arrested a 40-year-old man, Alfred Bassey, for alleged lack of care and negligence that led to the sudden death of his seven-year-old son.

Tochukwu Ikenga, the police spokesperson in Anambra, confirmed the arrest in a statement on Friday in Onitsha.

He explained that the arrest was in connection with an ongoing investigation of a reported case of the sudden death of a seven-year-old child at a construction site along the Trans-Nkisi Layout in Onitsha.

According to him, the police operatives attached to the 3-3 Divisional Headquarters arrested Mr Bassey, who hails from Abi in Cross River State, on Friday by 9.30 a.m.

“Preliminary investigation reveals that the father of the victim forcibly took the minor from the mother and has been living with him in an uncompleted building at Trans-Nkisi Layout Onitsha.

“Furthermore, on 11 December 2024, the lifeless body of the child was found in a soak-away pit dug in the abandoned uncompleted building after the suspect left the child for an unknown destination.

“The body of the child was later recovered and taken to the hospital before he was confirmed dead by a doctor,” said Mr Ikenga, a superintendent of police.

Mr Ikenga said the Commissioner of Police in Anambra, Nnaghe Itam, was saddened by the boy’s death.

Mr Itam admonished parents to prioritise the well-being of their children against any difference they may have had with their spouses to avoid exposing them to emotional and psychological trauma or death.

He directed the immediate transfer of the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Awka, for a more detailed investigation.

(NAN)